Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

OneWeb

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he plans to allocate further funding to Oneweb; and what progress Oneweb has made on expanding its UK supply chain.

George Freeman: The Government does not propose to invest further in OneWeb. Seventy percent of OneWeb’s workforce is UK-based. In addition, the active component of OneWeb’s current generation of satellites (the payload) is manufactured in the UK by Teledyne.OneWeb is aware of the Government’s ambition for it to further expand UK content in its satellites, including onshoring the manufacturing of its second-generation satellites.

Innovate UK: Expenditure

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will provide a breakdown of Innovate UK expenditure during the financial year ended 5 April 2021 of (a) employees, (b) individual contractors and consultations, excluding KTN, (c) other Innovate UK operational spending and overheads, (d) Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund grants, (e) other R&D grants, (f) SBRI contracts, excluding contract funding coming from other parts of the public sector, (g) loans to businesses, (h) core funding of catapults, (i) KTN operations, (j) other Innovate UK programmes and (k) other expenditures; and if he will make an estimate of how those annual expenditures are planned to change over the Spending Review.

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will provide a breakdown of innovation policy expenditure during the financial year ended 5 April 2021 of (a) employees, (b) individual contractors and consultations, excluding KTN, (c) other Innovate UK operational spending and overheads, (d) Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund grants, (e) other R&D grants, (f) SBRI contracts, excluding contract funding coming from other parts of the public sector, (g) loans to businesses, (h) core funding of catapults, (i) KTN operations, (j) other Innovate UK programmes and (k) other expenditures; and if he will make an estimate of how those annual expenditures are expected to change over the next three years.

George Freeman: A breakdown of expenditure for the whole of UKRI is set out in the UKRI annual report and accounts for 2020-21 (Note 2 Page 158)[1].[1] UKRI-200721-AnnualReport2020-2021.pdf

Department for Education

Department for Education: Staff

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will list the directorates within his Department as at 1 December 2021, and the (a) staffing in FTE terms and (b) total headcount in each of those directorates.

Alex Burghart: Please see the attached table for the list of the department’s directorates, with their full time equivalent (FTE) and headcount figures as at the requested date.92909_table (xls, 43.5KB)

Department for Education: Visits

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many external visitors there have been to the Department's office in Sanctuary Buildings in total, in each of the last 48 months.

Alex Burghart: The table below shows the data held on the number of external visitors to Sanctuary Buildings over the prior 36 months. Data prior to 2019 is not held by the department.YearJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec20195142481951844089487149354892302343645570532228652020463543452162000133393722282021813443143101111142392339584

Sixth Form Colleges

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many pieces of guidance have been issued by his Department to principals of sixth form colleges, excluding such guidance as relates only to particular individual schools, individual local authorities, or individual multi-academy trusts, in each of the last 36 months.

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many items of guidance have been issued by his Department to principals of further education institutions, excluding such guidance as relates only to particular individual institutions, in each of the last 36 months.

Alex Burghart: A database of publications by category can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/search/guidance-and-regulation?parent=department-for-education&level_one_taxon=c58fdadd-7743-46d6-9629-90bb3ccc4ef0&level_two_taxon=dd767840-363e-43ad-8835-c9ab516633de&organisations%5B%5D=department-for-education&public_timestamp%5Bfrom%5D=16/12/2018&order=updated-newest.This database can be interrogated to identify specific guidance aimed at specific audiences, including education and training providers.The database contains guidance which may have been updated on multiple occasions, for instance the guidance document ‘Actions for FE colleges and providers during the coronavirus pandemic’ has been updated 48 times since it was first published in March 2020: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-maintaining-further-education-provision#history.It includes guidance published by the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) for a variety of audiences. The ESFA communicates all major guidance updates through ESFA Update, which is issued to providers weekly, and ESFA inform, which is issued monthly. It has issued 49 editions of ESFA Update in 2021, 49 in 2020 and 50 in 2019. It has issued 9 editions of ESFA Inform in 2021, 8 in 2020 and 10 in 2019.The ESFA also publishes Business Update, which is aimed at FE providers and employers offering apprenticeships, highlighting related news and guidance updates. It issued 7 editions of Business Update in 2021, 15 in 2020 and 9 in 2019.

Ministry of Justice

Human Rights: Welsh Government

Ruth Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when he last discussed the merits of the Human Rights Act with the Welsh Government.

James Cartlidge: The Deputy Prime Minister spoke with the Welsh First Minister, Mark Drakeford, on 13th December to discuss the government’s proposed reforms to the Human Rights Act and the Welsh Government’s role in the consultation process. The Government will be seeking views on how best to reflect the interests of all parts of the UK.

Forced Marriage

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to (a) tackle and (b) bring forward tougher legislation on predatory marriage.

James Cartlidge: The Government takes the issue of protecting the vulnerable, including the elderly, from being taken advantage of extremely seriously. The Law Commission is working on two major law reform reviews commissioned by the Government which are relevant to our developing reform proposals in relation to predatory marriage. One is in relation to the law of weddings the other on the law of wills. Both projects have been exploring potential proposals to provide improved protection for vulnerable people, and we will review the case for reform when we have received the reports and recommendations from the Law Commission.

Human Rights Act 1998

Ruth Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Human Rights Act 1998.

James Cartlidge: The Human Rights Act has been in force for over 20 years now and it is entirely right that we should seek to update it. We need to make sure that our human rights framework continues to meet the needs of the society it serves. In December 2020, the Government established the Independent Human Rights Act Review (IHRAR) to examine the framework of the Human Rights Act, how it is operating in practice and whether any change is required. We published the IHRAR Panel’s report on 14 December alongside our consultation on proposals to overhaul the Act, and replace it with a Bill of Rights. The UK will remain a party to the European Convention on Human Rights. Our objective in overhauling our human rights legislation will be to change, reform and revise the domestic interpretation and application of the convention by the UK courts.

Criminal Proceedings

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department has set a maximum limit on the amount of time criminal cases should await trial, to act as a target for capping and reducing the increase in waiting times.

James Cartlidge: In the Crown Court we have seen the outstanding caseload stabilise at around 60,000 cases. The Spending Review provides an extra £477m funding for the criminal justice system. We estimate this will improve waiting times and reduce the number of outstanding cases to 53,000 by March 2025, ensuring that we do right by victims of crime. While we do not have set targets, we developed the Criminal Justice Action Plan at rapid pace to improve performance of the Criminal Justice System as a whole. The Action Plan defines a set of actions being carried out which intends to improve timeliness of cases throughout the CJS, whilst reducing the outstanding caseload backlog. Judges continue to work to prioritise cases involving vulnerable complainants and witnesses, to seek to ensure that domestic abuse, serious sex cases and those with vulnerable witnesses (including youth cases) are listed at the first available opportunity. Judges also seek to list cases within their custody time limit, if applicable. Having the right data across the Criminal Justice System is crucial to recovery. We are committed to working with our partners across the justice system to ensure that it underpins our approach. As part of that, we have committed to publish quarterly Criminal Justice scorecards which will bring together data from across the system on key areas of performance including on timeliness. This will allow us to identify problem areas and take a cross-system response to dips in performance. We have a number of measures to monitor different aspects of timeliness so that we can identify where in the process delays are occurring. The first national scorecards were published in early December and can be viewed at https://data.justice.gov.uk/cjs-scorecard-all-crime.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

Sudan: Politics and Government

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent steps she has taken to engage with the pro-democracy protest movement in Sudan following the political agreement of 21 November 2021.

Vicky Ford: I am pleased that Dr Hamdok has been reinstated as the Prime Minister of Sudan and that many detainees have been released following the Political Agreement on 21 November. The Agreement is an important first step towards restoring Sudan's transition to democracy, but we continue to call for the transition to be restored fully, for all detainees to be released and for the Sudanese people to be able to protest without fear of violence. We have delivered this message to the military leadership in Khartoum, in statements the Foreign Secretary and I made, and in international fora such as securing unanimous support for a resolution on Sudan at the UN Human Rights Council on 5 November. Most recently we reinforced this at the UN Security Council on 10 December and at the G7 Foreign and Development Ministers meeting in Liverpool on 11 December.Since the coup British Embassy staff in Khartoum and the UK Special Representative to Sudan and South Sudan have engaged with all parties, including the pro-democracy protest movement and diaspora representatives, to understand their positions, encourage progress, and demonstrate UK support for the democratic transition. The UK has been a consistent and firm advocate for the democratic transition and we will continue to engage with all parties in order to deliver the freedom, peace and justice called for by the Sudanese people.

South Africa: Zimbabwe

Ruth Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has held discussions with the South African government on their proposals to remove the permission to legally remain in that country from 200,000 holders of the Zimbabwean exemption permit on 31 December 2021.

Vicky Ford: We are aware of the proposals to remove Zimbabwean exemption permits. Details of this policy are still emerging but, if fully implemented, they would have significant impact in the region. Our High Commission in South Africa and Embassy in Zimbabwe are seeking to understand the proposals in greater detail and to establish what discussions are taking place between the two governments.

Iran: Guided Weapons

Greg Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with her counterparts in the (a) European Union and (b) US Administration on Iran’s ballistic missile programme.

James Cleverly: The Foreign Secretary and her officials hold regular discussions with European partners and the US on a range of issues concerning Iran, including its nuclear and ballistic missiles programme. The most recent meeting which included consideration of Iran's ballistic missiles took place at Political Director level in November. The UK, French and German Political Directors were joined by US Special Envoy on Iran, the Gulf Cooperation Council, Egypt and Jordan, to discuss their mutual concerns at Iranian use and transfer of ballistic missiles. Alongside France and Germany (as E3), we have also written repeatedly to the UN Secretary-General, most recently on 11 August, to bring attention to Iranian missile activity inconsistent with UNSCR 2231, the resolution which underpins the JCPoA.

Nicaragua: Taiwan

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she or her officials have held discussions with Nicaraguan counterparts on that county's termination of diplomatic ties with Taiwan.

Amanda Milling: There have been no conversations between the UK and Nicaragua on this issue since Nicaragua's decision to terminate relations with Taiwan.

Developing Countries: Females

Caroline Nokes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the effect of reductions in UK aid on the climate vulnerability of women and girls in developing countries.

Vicky Ford: Women and girls are disproportionately impacted by climate change and environmental degradation. Evidence shows that they are more likely to be dependant for their food and income on threatened natural resources, more likely to be responsible for securing increasingly scarce water and fuel, and significantly more likely to die or be displaced during climate-related disasters.We remain committed to our five-year pledge to spend £11.6 billion on International Climate Finance (ICF) with an extra £1bn in 2025 if the economy grows as forecast. This will support developing countries to adapt to the impacts of climate change and adopt clean growth pathways, reducing or avoiding carbon emissions. The UK will spend more than £10 billion this year to tackle climate change, improve global health and fight poverty - making us one of the biggest aid donors in the G7.

Developing Countries: Females

Caroline Nokes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how her Department measures the effect of climate vulnerability on women and girls in developing countries.

Vicky Ford: Women and girls are disproportionately impacted by climate change and environmental degradation. Evidence shows that they are more likely to be dependant for their food and income on threatened natural resources, more likely to be responsible for securing increasingly scarce water and fuel, and significantly more likely to die or be displaced during climate-related disasters. There are a number of measures of climate vulnerability that we use to inform our decision making and programming.At COP26 President Alok Sharma and UK International Champion on Adaptation and Resilience Anne-Marie Trevelyan hosted Gender Day which helped build momentum internationally to drive implementation of the Gender Action Plan agreed at COP25. This will support a greater focus on gender equality within action to tackle climate change and build resilience to climate-related disasters. The UK announced £165 million of funding to help address the dual challenges of gender inequality and climate change.

Afghanistan: Sanctions

Harriett Baldwin: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions her Department is having with HM Treasury on issuing updated sanctions guidance to give aid agencies, banks and other private sector actors greater clarity and confidence on how they can operate in Afghanistan.

James Cleverly: On 1 November, the UK's Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation issued new guidance (https://ofsi.blog.gov.uk/2021/11/01/ofsi-updates-charity-sector-guidance/ ) to the charity sector on operating in Afghanistan. This was issued after close collaboration with FCDO, and is kept under constant review. The UK government is working closely with the UN and non-governmental organisations (NGO) to ensure that UK aid benefits Afghans in need while meeting our international obligations. We are providing life-saving humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan through the UN, NGOs and the Red Cross Movement on the ground, who are continuing to ensure vital aid reaches those who need it most. We have made the humanitarian situation and access a major subject of our engagement with the Taliban. They have assured us and the UN that aid workers are able to operate freely, and the UN is reporting that this is broadly happening. We continue to monitor this closely.

Iran: Nuclear Power

Greg Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of Iran’s negotiating position at the current December 2021 nuclear talks in Vienna, resumed following first round talks in June 2021.

James Cleverly: Iran returned to talks on restoring the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPoA) on 29 November. We have been clear that if Iran is serious about rapidly restoring the JCPoA it should engage in good faith to swiftly resolve outstanding issues. The UK government will work tirelessly, constructively and in good faith to seek to restore the deal. However, Iran's nuclear escalation means that this is the last chance to save the JCPoA.

Occupied Territories: Schools

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what mechanisms are in place to assess the suitability of educational materials used in schools operated by the UN Relief and Works Agency in (a) the West Bank and (b) Gaza.

James Cleverly: We strongly condemn all forms of violence and incitement to violence. We accompany our support for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) with stringent attention to implementation of their neutrality policy, including how they apply this to textbooks and other learning material to ensure they reflect UN values. In Gaza and the West Bank, UNRWA uses the PA's curriculum in their schools after rigorously reviewing that it is in line with UN values.

Religious Freedom

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations she is making to countries in which Christians and other religious minorities face persecution on upholding freedom of religion or belief.

James Cleverly: The UK is committed to defending freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for all, and promoting respect between different religious and non-religious communities. Promoting the right to FoRB is one of the UK's longstanding human rights priorities. Bilaterally, Ministers and officials regularly raise specific cases of concern, and do not shy away from challenging publicly or in private those we believe are not meeting their obligations.Multilaterally, we work with the UN, Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, Council of Europe, G7 and other fora to promote FoRB. Lord Ahmad hosted a successful Arria meeting in the margins of the Security Council in March 2021, raising awareness on persecution of religious minorities in conflict. In May this year, we secured the inclusion of language on FoRB in the G7 communique for the first time, ensuring FoRB remains firmly on the international agenda.The UK will host an international Ministerial conference on FoRB in 2022 to energise collective efforts on this agenda.

Department for Work and Pensions

Social Security Benefits: Disability and Health

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will publish the report entitled The Uses of Health and Disability Benefits commissioned by her Department from the National Centre for Social Research.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the report entitled The Uses of Health and Disability Benefits commissioned by his Department from the National Centre for Social Research, what assessment she has made of the compatibility of the decision not to publish that report with the 2015 Government Social Research: Publication protocol.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the report entitled The Uses of Health and Disability Benefits, commissioned by her Department from the National Centre for Social Research, whether copies of the report were made available to the 120 disabled claimants who participated in that research.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the effects on benefit claimants of her Departments decision not to publish entitled The Uses of Health and Disability Benefits, commissioned by her Department from the National Centre for Social Research.

Chloe Smith: My Department is currently considering a range of policy options, and it is right to protect the private space within which Ministers and their policy advisers can develop policies without the risk of premature disclosure. The Publication Protocol for Government Social Research provides guidance on the publication of social research, but it is important that Ministers consider research and its publication on a case by case basis and in the best interests of Government policy formation.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Disinfectants: Testing

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if his Department will make an assessment of the efficacy of testing protocols for animal disinfectant products.

Jo Churchill: The Defra Disinfectant test scheme, operated by the Animal Health and Plant Agency, utilises fully validated and United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) accredited tests to determine the likely efficacy of disinfectants in controlling animal disease pathogens when used in the UK environment. Some comparative testing has been done to assess European standard (EN) tests for veterinary disinfectant efficacy but EN tests currently do not use the target organism or temperatures representative of the UK environment. The work we have conducted to date has shown that the standard EN tests are easier to pass compared to the equivalent Defra disinfectant test. We continue to monitor standards used elsewhere in the world and remain confident the Defra scheme offers the UK government strong assurance that the products passing the test will be effective in the UK environment.

Agriculture: Carbon Emissions

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with (a) landowners and (b) land-owning organisations on the steps those groups can take to help (i) tackle climate change and (ii) achieve the net zero emissions target.

Jo Churchill: On 27 June 2019, the UK became the first major economy in the world to set a legally binding target to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions from across the UK economy by 2050. Nature based solutions and the way we use and manage our land will have a critical role to play in enabling us to meet this target. My officials have regular discussions with farmers, landowners and land owning organisations on the role they can play – including in helping to co-design our future environmental land management schemes which will be crucial in rewarding farmers and landowners for actions that benefit the environment and reduce or sequester emissions. In a recent speech for the Country Land and Business Association on 2 December 2021, the Secretary of State outlined further details for his plans in this area. Environment Secretary speech at CLA Conference 2 December 2021 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Disinfectants: Testing

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if his Department will consider the potential merits of introducing additional tests at higher temperatures for the approval of animal disinfectant products.

Jo Churchill: The Defra Disinfectant test scheme, operated by the Animal Health and Plant Agency, provides assurance that disinfectants can be effective in controlling animal disease pathogens when used in the UK environment. The test is designed to operate at four degrees centigrade which is representative of typical UK conditions. Defra has no plans to introduce tests at higher temperatures.

Avian Influenza: Disease Control

Dr Dan Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of its resources to manage effectively an outbreak of avian flu.

Jo Churchill: The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) is the lead delivery body within Government for animal disease control. APHA has tried and tested contingency and outbreak response plans. Where necessary, these facilitate additional support from culling and disposal contractors through contingency framework contracts and the deployment of additional veterinarians through the Veterinary Delivery Partnership (VDP). The VDP awards contracts to delivery partners to supply a flexible package of veterinary services.The UK is facing its largest ever outbreak of avian influenza with over 60 cases confirmed across the country during November and December. During any significant avian influenza outbreak, resource capacity and capability would be kept under close review. Through its close working relationships with Defra group, the devolved administrations, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and local authorities, APHA has access to further means of support; for example, enabling additional surge capacity to be brought on-stream where required.Activation of contingencies is determined in the light of close monitoring of the situation on the ground and with advice from relevant experts. Current measures are proportionate and in line with national law and international law, including trade requirements. Our overriding aim is to limit the spread and the economic impact of avian influenza disease on the industry.

Disinfectants: Testing

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the minimum temperature thresholds for approval of animal disinfectant products.

Jo Churchill: The Defra Disinfectant test scheme, operated by the Animal Health and Plant Agency, utilises fully validated and United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) accredited tests. These tests operate at a temperature of four degrees centigrade. Whilst this is not the minimum temperature a disinfectant may need to operate at in the UK it is representative of typical UK conditions and significantly lower that the ten degrees centigrade required by European standard (EN) tests. Changing this temperature would have significant implications for the products already approved under this scheme.

Avian Influenza

Dr Dan Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what strategies his Department has in place to help prevent high rates of infection of avian flu among commercial bid populations in the next ten years.

Jo Churchill: Effective animal disease control is a top priority and the Department has a strong track record of controlling and eliminating outbreaks in the UK, working with industry, the wider veterinary community, and key delivery bodies such as the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA). Defra’s approach to the control of avian influenza is set out in the Notifiable Avian Disease Control Strategy for Great Britain and our tried and tested Contingency Plan for Exotic Notifiable Diseases of Animals in England. The assessment of risk drives the UK’s approach to biosecurity and disease control as it enables us effectively to identify, detect and respond to threats.

Avian Influenza: Vaccination

Dr Dan Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department plans to vaccinate wild bird populations against avian flu.

Jo Churchill: Defra has no plans to vaccinate the wild bird population against avian influenza. Defra’s policy on vaccination is set out in the Notifiable Avian Disease Control Strategy for Great Britain and in separate guidance on GOV.UK. Outside of zoos, the vaccination of birds as an immediate disease control response is not currently permitted. High standards of biosecurity, separation of poultry and other captive birds from wild birds, and careful surveillance for signs of disease remain the most effective means of controlling avian influenza. In practice, existing vaccines can only be administered via injection. This precludes any widespread use in wild birds. While vaccination can help to reduce mortality, it is likely that some vaccinated birds would still be capable of transmitting avian influenza if they became infected. This would increase the time taken to detect and eradicate the virus.

Tree Planting

Ben Lake: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many hectares of broadleaf woodland has been planted at an appropriate spacing and with protections from damage from grey squirrels and deer in each year since 2010.

Rebecca Pow: The Forestry Commission does not hold that data. However, it produces Official Statistics on new planting of woodland in England annually for each financial year in thousands of hectares. Most new planting in the period since 2010 has been supported by Forestry Commission-facilitated grants. Such grant-supported new planting is subject to inspection and there is an expectation that recipients of ongoing maintenance payments will support the careful establishment of their woodland, including appropriate protection from pests such as grey squirrels or deer, which may include tree guards. The areas for new planting of broadleaved woodland are published on Forestry Statistics.

Countryside: Access

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to improve free access to the countryside and nature for all UK residents.

Rebecca Pow: The Government's 25 Year Environment Plan (25YEP), published in January 2018, makes major new commitments to connect people with the environment to improve health and wellbeing. Building on this work, the Green Recovery Challenge Fund has recently awarded £80million to nature-based projects across England to support a green recovery from Covid-19. The fund has "connecting people with nature" as one of its three key objectives. An example of one of the projects delivered is GreenSpace for Health, which aims to make NHS sites greener and provide outdoor wellbeing sessions for NHS staff. The Government is also working to create new access through the completion of the England Coast Path: a 2700 mile long National Trail around the whole of the English coast. Following its inclusion in the Conservative Party manifesto and the Chancellor's Autumn Statement, Defra has also asked Natural England to prepare a report proposing the Coast to Coast as a National Trail between St Bees in Cumbria and Robin Hoods Bay in North Yorkshire. The goal is to realise the full environmental, social and economic benefits that a new National Trail will bring by working closely with local stakeholders to identify opportunities, for instance for link routes which maximise accessibility to and from the Trail to local centres of population. We will also continue to pay for heritage, access and engagement through our existing environmental land management schemes and we will consider how to maintain investment in these areas as part of future schemes. On top of this, we are leading a £5.77million cross-Governmental project to test nature-based social prescribing in seven test and learn sites, run national research work to understand its scalability, and deliver a robust project evaluation. This will help improve mental health and wellbeing by connecting more people to nature. Lastly, the recently announced £9million Levelling Up Parks Fund will create over 100 green spaces across the UK on land which is unused, undeveloped or derelict. The Fund, led by the Department for Levelling Up Housing and Communities, will seek to increase accessibility to quality green space across the UK, helping to level up areas which are most deprived of green space and provide communities with a place to come together.

Sewage: Coastal Areas and Rivers

Derek Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if his Department will set targets for the (a)  limiting and (b) ending of sewage overflow into rivers and coasts.

Derek Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he plans to take in response to the failure by water companies to significantly reduce storm overflows.

Rebecca Pow: The current failure of water companies to adequately reduce sewage discharges is unacceptable and we have made clear that much more must be done to protect our rivers and tackle this issue. We will not hesitate to take further action if needed to deliver our commitments in this area.We're the first Government to take steps to address this by setting an expectation on water companies to significantly reduce sewage discharges from storm overflows through the draft Strategic Policy Statement for Ofwat. We have enshrined this expectation in legislation as a new duty in the Environment Act.This world-leading Act includes a raft of measures to protect and restore our water environment. The following key duties have been made law:a new duty on Government to produce a statutory plan to reduce discharges from storm overflows and their adverse impact, and report to Parliament on progress.a requirement for Government to produce a report setting out the actions that would be needed to eliminate discharges from storm overflows in England, and the costs and benefits of those actions.a new duty directly on water companies and the Environment Agency to publish data on storm overflow operation on an annual basis.a new duty directly on water companies to publish near real time information on the operation of storm overflows.a new duty directly on water companies to monitor the water quality upstream and downstream of storm overflows and sewage disposal works.a new duty directly on water companies to secure a progressive reduction in the adverse impact of discharges from storm overflows.a new duty directly on water companies to produce comprehensive statutory Drainage and Sewerage Management Plans, setting out how they will manage and develop their drainage and sewerage system over a minimum 25-year planning horizon, including how storm overflows will be addressed through these plans.a power of direction for the Government to direct water companies in relation to the actions in these Drainage and Sewerage Management Plans. We will not hesitate to use this power of direction if plans are not good enough.More information on ambition and timescales will be provided during the upcoming price review period - the Government, Ofwat and the Environment Agency all have roles to play in clarifying this detail. We expect to issue guidance to water companies early in 2022. We have also been clear the statutory plan legislated for in the Environment Act is the right place to set our guiding principles to reduce harm from storm overflows and this will be consulted on in Spring 2022.The recently published Storm Overflows Evidence Project considers a wide range of policies and scenarios to reduce storm overflows. It is right that we consider the findings carefully to achieve the maximum benefits for the environment and human health whilst minimising the impact on the public's water bills.

Conifers

Ben Lake: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many hectares of conifer woodland have been felled or removed and not replanted with conifers in England in each year since 2010.

Rebecca Pow: Government does not hold this information, however the Forestry Commission produces Official Statistics on woodland in England that is felled and not replanted as a part of the restoration and creation of open habitats. These are provided as a total for all woodland including both conifer and broadleaf on an annual basis in the Forestry Commission Key Performance Indicators. These statistics are available from 2010-21 onwards and the areas from the published statistics are shown below: Year (ending 31 March)Open habitats restored or created in woodland in England (hectares)2011893201273520134602014906201534320165502017285201833520191812020-802021408Source: Forestry Commission administrative data Note: the net reduction in 2019-20 in open habitat restoration or creation was due to a land transfer from Forestry England to Forestry and Land Scotland.

Conifers

Ben Lake: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many hectares of conifer woodland have been felled or removed and replaced with broadleaf woodland in England in each year since 2010.

Rebecca Pow: Government does not hold this information, however the Forestry Commission produces Official Statistics on plantations on ancient woodland sites (PAWS) that have been restored to native broadleaf woodland in England (hectares). These are provided as a total for all plantation woodland on ancient woodland sites including both conifer and broadleaf on an annual basis in the Forestry Commission Key Performance Indicators. These statistics are available from 2010-21 onwards and the areas from the published statistics are shown below: Year (ending 31 March)Plantations on ancient woodland sites (PAWS) restored in woodland in England (hectares)201136120122,89320131,79120144,40220153,63920165,23920172,47120181,42020192,19120201,29520211,735Source: Forestry Commission administrative data Note: Figures are incomplete for 2010-11 as there is no data for PAWS restored in the nation’s forests managed by Forestry England for that year.

Birds: Conservation

Derek Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department plans to take steps to set species recovery targets for (a) the Manx Shearwater and (b) other birds of conservation concern.

Rebecca Pow: As a core part of our commitment to leave the environment in a better state than we found it, the Environment Act now requires a new legally binding target to be set to halt the decline in species abundance by 2030. This will drive actions to deliver wide-ranging improvements to biodiversity, including for UK birds. The Act also includes provisions to set other, long-term legally binding environmental targets, including for biodiversity.We are taking a strategic look at how we can support species recovery to help achieve our targets, and will set out our approach to meet our Environment Act targets in our update of the Environmental Improvement Plan in 2023. The UK's seabirds, including the Manx Shearwater, are an important part of our natural heritage, and their protection is a high priority for this Government. We are working with Natural England to develop a comprehensive English Seabird Conservation Strategy. This strategy will aim to assess the vulnerability of each seabird species in light of the pressures they are facing and propose actions to address them.

Home Office

Asylum: Hotels

Claire Hanna: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many hotels are being used to house asylum seekers in Northern Ireland.

Kevin Foster: The Home Office is currently utilising 13 hotels in Northern Ireland to accommodate asylum seekers. We would encourage more local authorities across Northern Ireland to step forward to work with us to reduce our hotel usage.

Police: Training

Kirsten Oswald: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to ensure that (a) training on how to identify and support victims of online abuse is made available to the police and (b) the police have adequate resources and technology to promptly investigate online abuse.

Rachel Maclean: The Digital Intelligence and Investigation (DII) programme, which is funded by the Home Office and run by the College of Policing, is aimed at ensuring front line officers and staff have the digital skills they need to undertake investigations effectively. This includes accredited training on digital forensics, internet intelligence and investigations and supporting victims of all digital crimes. A new module focusing on assessing risk and vulnerability in a digital environment is due to be released in January. This programme helps ensure the police have the range of skills they need to tackle a range of crimes which involve the internet.We also fund the Police Online Hate Crime Hub to improve the police response to victims of online hate crime and help police forces to coordinate investigations. The Hub allows the public to report any online abuse through a single online portal, known as True Vision, and where a jurisdiction can be identified, it is passed to the relevant force. Where this is not possible (e.g. because a perpetrator cannot be identified) the Hub also directs support to victims.

Refugees: Afghanistan

Ian Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what practical support and services, including legal support, will be available to help families, including constituents in Liverpool West Derby, to navigate the Afghan citizens resettlement scheme when it opens.

Victoria Atkins: The first to be resettled through the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) will be many of those who arrived in the UK under the evacuation programme, which included individuals who were considered to be at particular risk.Eligible evacuees already in the UK who currently hold Leave Outside the Rules can, if they wish, seek legal advice as part of the process.All those brought to the UK eligible for the ACRS will have the right to work, access to education and health care and be able to apply for public funds. To ensure they will be supported properly, changes have been made to legislation where necessary, so that they do not need to meet the habitual residence test when applying for benefits.Under the ACRS, councils will receive £20,520 per person, over 3 years, to enable them to support these vulnerable people as they rebuild their lives in the UK. Councils also receive additional funding per child towards educational costs, and can claim £850 per adult to provide additional English language tuition in the first year after arrival.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Vaccination: Disinformation

Wes Streeting: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many accounts have been reported to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube for anti-vaccine disinformation by the Government’s rapid response unit.

Chris Philp: The Government takes the issue of disinformation very seriously. Since March 2020 the DCMS-led cross-Government Counter Disinformation Unit (CDU) has worked to provide a comprehensive picture of the extent, scope and the reach of disinformation and misinformation linked to COVID-19.The Unit’s primary function is to provide a comprehensive picture of the extent, scope and impact of disinformation and misinformation regarding Covid-19 and to work with partners to ensure appropriate action is taken. Where dangerous and incorrect claims about the virus are identified these are flagged to the relevant platforms, whose responsibility it is to take action in accordance with their terms and conditions. As an operational matter it is not appropriate for the government to give a running commentary on the amount of disinformation identified.

Arts: Finance

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the amount of funding allocated to arts in each of the last twenty years.

Nigel Huddleston: Details of arts funding for the last twenty years are published in DCMS’s Annual Reports and Accounts which are available on gov.uk.Last year the Government announced the unprecedented Culture Recovery Fund – the biggest arts funding package in our country’s history. To date, over £1.5 billion has been allocated from the fund, reaching over 5,000 organisations and venues.

COP26

Carbon Emissions: Military Operations

Patrick Grady: To ask the President of COP26, whether the potential inclusion of carbon emissions from military activities on the agenda for COP26 was discussed during preparations for that conference.

Patrick Grady: To ask the President of COP26, if he will make it his policy to seek the inclusion of carbon emissions from military activities on the agenda for COP27.

Alok Sharma: Emissions from the military were not on the agenda at COP26 and as such, were not discussed during preparations for the conference.The agenda for each meeting is agreed by consensus through the UNFCCC.